Both Ukrainians and Germans drive on the right hand sight of the road.

With reference to speed limit, Germany has a speed limit of 50 km/h in built-up areas and 100 km/h outside built-up areas. On motorways, there is no speed limit, but a recommended (only advisory) speed of 130 km/h. However, there is often a speed limit introduced in most sections of the motorway.

In Germany, the general allowable alcohol level is 0.5 %. There is zero tolerance for professional drivers and young drivers under 21.

For more information please check German Road Safety . The website provides an overview of the most important rules of the road in Germany.

If you hold a valid driving license, you do not have to take any more steps. Your driver’s license is valid in Germany and in all EU Member States without a translation needed.

If you hold a digital version of your driving license and Ukrainian authorities, upon request, can confirm its validity, your driving license will be recognized.

In case your driving license has been lost or stolen, please contact the respective driver licensing authority of your place of residence. The respective authority will inquire the Ukrainian Register of Driving Licenses to confirm the validity of your driving license. You will then receive a driving license valid throughout the EU for the duration of the temporary protection status, which is until 6 March 2025 at the latest. For this procedure, it is helpful to have a copy of the driving license at hand, since the serial number of the Ukrainian driving license (3 letters), license number and date of birth is required.

For more information please visit the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport .

To drive on public roads, motorists have to register their car in Germany within one year. The period starts with the day of entry into Germany. The car can be registered at the vehicle registration authority of the respective federal state. To register a vehicle, you must fill out various documents including a certificate of motor vehicle liability insurance and a personal identity document. Also, you have to pay a registration fee. For more information on the registration process, please visit Information for Ukrainian motorists as well as the websites of your local authorities.

Ukrainian cars must pass a technical inspection one year after entering Germany

Ukrainian cars that have been in Germany for more than a year must pass a technical inspection. As reported in DW, this was agreed upon by the transport ministries of the German states.

Safety for road users and compliance with the norms of harmful emissions into the atmosphere will be checked.

Сars will not be checked for compliance with the technical requirements in force in Germany and the EU, because cars will continue to be registered in Ukraine.

The new rules will come into effect after final approval in each federal state. They will enter into force from the moment of their approval and publication.

Also, for Ukrainian cars, until April 1, 2024, the grace period will be extended, when it is possible not to receive German license plates after a year of stay in the country.

In order to continue to drive with Ukrainian license plates without a German driver's license and without paying a transport fee, you need to obtain a special permit from the car registration authorities at your place of residence. To do this, you need to provide a certificate of technical inspection and a driver's license for those traveling abroad. Source .

If you are not the owner of the car you are driving, it is useful to carry a written authorization from the actual car owner with you including substantial details, such as the license plate and the insurance number of the car in case authorities might ask for it. Further, the owner should contact the motorist insurance to cover possible damages caused by the third party.

If you brought a car to Germany, you need a motor vehicle liability insurance in case you will be held liable for third-party damages. Driving without insurance is a criminal offence. There are two options to insure your car:

If your car already has an Ukrainian motor vehicle insurance, you can prove the required insurance by a green card issued by the Ukrainian motor vehicle provider. For more information please check this site .

You can also purchase a frontier insurance in Germany or at the EU border. Those kinds of insurances also offer valid liability cover throughout EU-countries listed on the frontier insurance policy. For further information on obtaining the insurance in Germany, please check Die Versicherer .

Vignettes are a method of road pricing. Vignettes are colored stickers that must be fixed to the windshield proving the payment of the necessary fee for entering the respective roads. Drivers must obtain a vignette for each country, as there is no universal vignette sticker. Such physical vignettes can be purchased at petrol stations or borders in neighboring countries. You can also purchase a digital vignette on various online pages.

If you transit other European countries, make sure to inform yourself about the road pricing and their methods of charging. If you do not purchase a valid vignette when required, you risk having to pay additional fines. For further information on tolls within the EU please check tolls.eu .

In Germany, the motorways are tolled only for vehicles with a total weight of 7.5t or more. Passenger cars are usually not subject to tolls so that motorways are free of charge. In the light of the war, humanitarian aid transports are granted an exemption from tolls on German highways. For information on the requirements in Germany please consult this Fact Sheet .

It is forbidden to park 5m in front of crossovers or side roads. Drivers must not park in front of a driveway, bus stop signs or on manhole covers. Overall, parking is not allowed in a lot of places. Parking areas are marked by a blue traffic sign with a white “P” on them. Sometimes you will have to purchase a pay-and-display-ticket or put a blue parking marker under the car’s windshield.

Please visit Mobilitätsmagazin to know more about fines in Germany.

There are several services that will help you park your car correctly in any German city.

Some of the most convenient are parkopedia.de and ParkMe.com . They can calculate the distance to the nearest parking lot, show free spaces and calculate the final cost of parking in real time. There is also gratisparken.de which will show you all the free parking lots in Germany. And the EasyPark application will help not only to find parking zones, but also to pay for a parking space online.

The penalty system in Germany is referred to “Punkte in Flensburg” (points in Flensburg). Under German law, foreigners travelling through Germany also can be punished by “points in Flensburg” if they commit a violation according to the schedule of fines. This system generally records how many traffic violations one has committed.

Drivers are mostly held liable for exceeding speed, parking violations and intoxicated driving. In contrast to other countries, German police will place cameras in difficult to spot areas to catch speeding motorists with most of them not having warning signs.

Fines of less than €40 are charged by warnings (Verwanung) and may be put on your windshield. These warnings must be paid within one week, unless properly protested. A penalty order (Bußgeldbescheinigung) is issued if the violation is more than €40 or if the warning ticket is overdue. Additional fees are automatically added.

To pay your fine, you have to take the ticket into your local bank to transfer the money from your account to the issuing authority. The essential bank details of the authority can be found on the ticket.

For further information on German fines and trafficking rules please check Mobilitätsmagazin .

If you want to carry a trailer – that you purchased in a foreign country –in German public road traffic, you have to apply for an authorization. You apply for registration at the competent authority in whose area you have your residence. You need a valid identity card or passport, electronic confirmation of insurance (eVB), registration certificate part II (vehicle registration document), certificate of conformity (English abbreviation: COC) or individual approval of the trailer in the original, and a report on the successfully completed and valid main inspection.

For further information please follow this site and consult the homepage of your local authorities.

There are no restrictions on what you can buy and take with you when travelling within the EU provided that the bought products are for you own use and not for resale. Taxes on are already included in the retail price of the product. To determine if the products purchased are intended for your own use, customs authorities may verify the products, e.g. the packages or the quantity. In order to prove that goods are for your own use, authorities may ask to see the receipt or other proof of purchase. If you cannot provide sufficient evidence, you might have to pay duties or the products can be confiscated.

If you carry 10,000 euros or more in cash, alcohol drinks, tobacco products, fuel or other goods including perfume, certain restrictions may apply regarding the quantity and value of the products. For more information please check this site .